All five Oilers players participating in the tournament played on Victoria Day, but only one player got on the scoresheet. Canada remains undefeated, beating Denmark 5-1. However, USA dropped another game, losing 6-2 to Finland, while Germany fell 6-1 to Switzerland, and Sweden fell 4-3 to Czechia.

Let’s take a look at how Evan Bouchard, Darnell Nurse, Isaac Howard, Josh Samanski, and Mattias Ekholm performed on Monday.

Canada vs. Denmark

Coming into this game, Nurse had three assists, while Bouchard had a goal and led Canadian players in ice time. Neither player got on the scoresheet in this one. In fact, neither team scored through the first 40 minutes of this game.

Porter Martone scored just 28 seconds into the third period to give Canada a lead. Three minutes into the final frame, Gabriel Vilardi made it 2-0, then Denton Mateychuk scored 21 seconds later to give Canada a 3-0 lead.

Danish forward Nick Olesen got the Nordic team on the board, but Ryan O’Reilly responded with a goal less than two minutes later. With just 29 seconds left on the clock, defenceman Parker Wotherspoon scored one for good measure, giving Canada the 5-1 victory.

Although neither Oilers defenceman got on the scoresheet, they were still noticeable in this game. Once again, Bouchard led all players in ice time, amassing about 24 minutes in the game, while also finishing as a +4 with three shots. Nurse played 19:54, the second most minutes, and finished with three first-period shots and an even 0.

USA vs. Finland

It’s been a slow start for the reigning gold medallists. After dropping their tournament opener to Switzerland, the Americans responded with a 5-1 victory over Great Britain on Sunday, with Howard scoring twice in that game. Monday’s game against Finland was more in line with their tournament opener, though.

Six minutes into the first, Lenni Hämeenaho opened the scoring for the Finns, but Calgary Flames forward Matt Coronato tied it less than two minutes later. That tie lasted 61 seconds, as Patrik Puistola beat Joseph Woll to restore the Finn’s lead, then Aatu Räty scored with just under six to play for a 3-1 lead.

Hämeenaho scored his second of the game just 86 seconds into the second period, then Saku Mäenalanen scored 31 seconds later to blow the game open. There was no more scoring after 40, and the States got some hope in the form of Ryan Leonard’s goal just over three minutes into the third, but Anton Lundell responded just over three minutes later. Finland held on for the victory.

This was easily Howard’s worst game of the tournament. The Finns scored twice with the Oiler forward on the ice, but on top of that, Howard didn’t register a shot on goal in his 14 minutes of ice time. Howard’s linemate, Oliver Moore, picked up an assist.

Germany vs. Switzerland

The lone Oiler to get on the scoresheet on Monday was Josh Samanski, picking up an assist on Frederik Tiffels’ goal late in the third. But before that, the Swiss scored five in the second period thanks to goals from Denis Malgin, Sven Andrighetto, Christoph Bertschy, Nico Hischier, and Roman Josi. For good measure, Andrighetto scored his second of the game five minutes into the third.

TSN

@TSN_Sports

·Follow

Despite the score, just an absolutely INCREDIBLE play from Lukas Reichel to setup Frederik Tiffels! 🇩🇪 #MensWorlds

Watch on X

8:28 PM · May 18, 2026

Read 1 reply

This assist was Samanski’s first of the tournament, but his third point in his eight games with the German national team in 2025-26. During the 2026 Olympics in February, the Oilers centre scored a goal and an assist in five games. In the 2025 Worlds, Samanski finished with two goals and five points in seven games.

Samanski failed to get a shot on goal in his 18 minutes of action. He played the most minutes for any German forward and took 19 of the 45 draws in this game, winning 47.37 per cent of them.

Sweden vs. Czechia

Like the States, it’s been a rough start for Sweden. They fell 5-3 to Canada in their tournament opener before responding with a 6-2 victory over Denmark on Sunday. Well, they lost again, dropping a 4-3 decision to Czechia in Group B’s evening game.

Oiler draftee Matěj Blümel opened the scoring for Czechia three minutes into the game before Dominik Kubalik extended their lead to two with just over seven and a half minutes remaining in the opening frame.

However, the scoring didn’t end there, as Jakub Flek gave Czechia a 3-0 lead, with former Oiler David Tomášek picking up a helper on the goal. Sweden finally started to play in the final five minutes of the first as former Oiler Joel Persson got them on the board, then picked up an assist on Simon Holmström’s goal.

Down 3-2 after 20, the Swedes allowed the first goal of the second period, as Jiří Černoch scored just over three minutes into the second. Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored six minutes into the second, which held up as the final goal of the game.

It looked as if Sweden tied the game late in the second, but their goal was called off due to a crease violation. Despite an empty net late in the game, the Swedes were unable to tie it.

As for Ekholm, the Oilers’ veteran defenceman played a team-high 24 minutes, notching a first-period shot and finishing as an even 0.

Other notes…

Those were the only four games on tap on Monday, and each one featured an Oiler. Unfortunately, all five Oilers are off on Tuesday. Austria plays Latvia and Norway plays Italy at 8:20 a.m. MT, while Hungary plays Great Britain and Slovakia plays Slovenia at 12:20 p.m. MT.

Three Oilers are back in action on Wednesday, as Samanski’s Germany faces Howard’s United States at 12:20 p.m. MT. At the same time over in Group B, Ekholm’s Sweden takes on Slovenia. Nurse and Bouchard have the next two days off, but return to action on Thursday at 8:20 a.m. MT in a matchup against Norway.